Germany will build new fossil-fuelled power plants on the sites of decommissioned nuclear facilities, the country’s economy minister has said.

Philipp Roesler today said he envisaged this strategy taking place in the coming years as a means of Germany meeting its energy demands while initiating the government’s nuclear phase out. “All the necessary grid connections are already there,” he said.

According to state broadcaster ARD, Roesler added that the market would dictate whether these plants would be powered by coal or gas.

However his comments seem at odds with those of John Schellnhuber, energy advisor to the Merkel government, who this week stated that “the money is absolutely available” to make the global power industry run on renewables instead of fossil fuels.